LETTER : Shameful British arms exports

Sir: Sue Lloyd-Roberts is to be congratulated on her report (27 March) of Britain's shameful and ill-judged export of arms to Indonesia. Indonesia, Turkey and Bahrain, to name but three recipients of British war equipment, are notorious for gross human rights abuses.

The contestants in the election should be challenged to state publicly whether they are willing to abandon the export of death and destruction to poorer parts of the world where scarce resources would be better employed on food and health.